Conical Battenfeld extruder series now complete

In response to the extraordinary market success of its first conical extruder model, Battenfeld Extrusionstechnik GmbH, Bad Oeynhausen, Germany now offers a complete series of three conical extruders. To the BEX 2-54-C already proven on the production floor in the medium-performance range, a small co-extruder, the BEX 2-42 CC, and a larger model, the BEX 2-72-C, have been added.

“In co-operation with American Maplan, our sister company in the U.S., we have de-veloped a conical extruder with an active conical screw flight and a convincing per-formance leading to higher output combined with excellent homogenization and melt properties. Our active conical extruders offer a genuine alternative solution for cer-tain applications in the lower to medium quantity production range,” Wolfgang Stu-dener, Managing Director of

Battenfeld Extrusionstechnik, comments - who recently changed his previous motto of “Parallel is beautiful” into “To err is human - BEX is also capable of conical”.

The meaning of “active conical” - in terms of Battenfeld extruders compared to sim-ply “conical”, conventional machines - is a special screw geometry with a reduced screw flight in the feed zone and an increased screw flight in the metering zone. The slightly reduced feeding volume, combined with a torque set sufficiently high, allows the machine to be operated from a full hopper. Negative thread angles in the feed zones provide an enlarged screw surface, which optimizes material pre-heating. The increased screw flight is of greatest benefit especially in the ejection zone, allowing for a higher transport volume without increasing the screw pitch. With this design, the same output can be reached at a lower screw speed, which lengthens the life of the screw. Thanks to reduced friction, considerably more precise melt temperature con-trol inside the extruder is also possible.

Besides the BEX 2-54 C extruder, covering the 20 to 140 kg/h performance range, and already proven on the production floor, the BEX 2-72 C with a performance ranging from

50 to 250 kg/h is now also available. Without exception, all features of the well-tried model have been incorporated into the new, larger machine, making it suitable for a wide range of applications. Flexibility is one of the new, large, active conical extruder’s outstanding characteristics; for instance, it is also perfectly suited to producing window main profiles at an average line speed of 3m/min. The third model to complete the active conical series is the “small” co-extruder BEX 2-42 CC, designed for an output from 10 to 70 kg/h.

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